The St. Charles Parish Sheriff's Office has arrested a Luling man for the murder of a Metairie electrician on his way to work Monday (Jan. 9). Sheriff Greg Champagne said Jerel Anthony Smith was arrested without incident Wednesday morning.

Smith, 31, has been charged with first-degree murder, armed robbery with use of a firearm, and carjacking in connection with the death of Ryan Dubuc. The sheriff's office has also connected him to a Dec. 29 armed robbery at the same convenience store where Dubuc was last seen.

Authorities were told around 9:45 a.m. Monday there was a body on a side road near Highway 3160 in Hahnville. Deputies responded and found Dubuc, 28, had sustained multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead on scene.

The sheriff's office said Dubuc, a contractor working at Cornerstone Chemical Co., had stopped Monday morning at Birdie's Food and Fuel in Luling. That was where they said Smith entered Dubuc's vehicle with the victim and left.

A separate armed robbery was reported at Birdie's on Dec. 29. In this incident, the suspect approached the victim in the parking lot, demanding money. After a brief struggle, the victim surrendered a small amount of cash and the suspect fled. During the investigation of Dubuc's murder, detectives reached a witness to the Dec. 29 incident, which led to Smith being charged with another count of armed robbery.

Smith is being held in the Nelson Coleman Correctional Center. His booking information and bond was not posted on the facility's website as of 5 p.m. Wednesday.